Don’t forget to leave room for wild card

Tom Pattinson

Ornamental plants, including bedding subjects, that have been marking time in pots and trays will have to be planted out soon.

Don’t forget to check the roots for ringing. Any container-grown plant, large or small, benefits from having such roots teased apart before planting to stimulate new growth.

No matter how well summer displays have been planned and relevant plants either raised or bought in, there should be room for the wild card, something different and a ‘must have’ that catches the eye.

If this is at the garden centre, you can judge whether the price is reasonable for the plant you can see.

In this respect, plant offers in the press, gardening magazines and online can be fraught with difficulty at this stage of the season. You need to ascertain when the plants will arrive and what stage of development they’re at. The advert should say whether they’re in mini, standard or jumbo plugs, or in the case of perennials, the pot size.

• Alnwick Garden Club is in The Alnwick Garden next Tuesday. Meet at the Pavilion at 7.30pm. Visitors are welcome.